My sister in law had two toy poodles one time that she spent a fortune on in just keeping them clipped--nothing really fancy, either. I loved her two little guys, but at the time would never have considered owning one. Later, my husband and I did end up buying two little toy poodles for ourselves. We made the decision when we realized that they don't shed and so are hypoallergenic. We haven't looked back. They have been the best two dogs I think either of us has ever owned. And the grooming cost is nothing, as we've not yet paid a single other soul to do it. I got a good pair of clippers and two different sized blades (A 10 and a 4, I believe) and have clipped them myself since the beginning. Do they look as good as if I had them professionally done? Probably not, but they do look cute. I'm, not a fan of poufs and fluffs anyway, so I just basically give them a puppy cut. Which, if I did pay someone to do them, is probably all I'd ever have done. It's really very simple and pretty much anyone can do it, so why pay to have it done?
I used to clip my cat's nails when she was a young kitten, but as she has grown older she wants to head outside and climb trees, etc. I've stopped clipping them ever since. Don't want to give her a disadvantage in her natural habitat Besides, it gives her a sense of security as she's always keeping an eye out for cats and dogs wanting to pounce on her..
I bathe my cats with flea shampoo every now and then, but have never clipped them. I've seen cats clipped to look like lions. Is that the kind of clipping you do? Other than that, I've never seen a cat clipped--unless it was for surgery, maybe.
At one time I used to try and keep my (young) cat's claws clipped so they wouldn't scratch so at the furniture and woodwork. Danged if it didn't make things worse as they then will scratch even more in the effort to re-sharpen their claws. I've ended up with a cat that was my father's. He had the cat declawed. I find that it does little to stop that cat from doing anything. He can still climb and he's still a "mighty hunter". I was concerned for him for awhile, thinking he would be unable to defend himself from other animals, but so far he has managed quite nicely. I make him stay in at night, though. And I live in a house with some acreage in the country, so there aren't often any stray dogs or other cats to be afraid of.
No, just clipping her claws when they get too long, just like you do with your nails. Minimizes the damage your cat can do to your furniture etc, and you won't bleed when you play with it.
I have a rabbit and a mixed puppy (Boxer and Pitbull), and we only have to clip their nails! We took the rabbit in to have her nail clipped and it cost us $15.00 dollars and that was their promotion. After this trip, there was no more as $15 dollars was too much to spend for me. We took the puppy in to have his nails clipped and I paid $15 bucks with hefty price of flea infestation on him a day later! It was a nightmare for months afterward to treat him and the fleas using all natural flea concoction that I know. I won't ever take my pets back to any store for clipping anymore after these two trips. We do the clipping ourselves to save money and headaches!
